The invention relates to the use of an LTB4 antagonist or a prodrug thereof for preparing a pharmaceutical composition for the treatment or prevention of respiratory diseases in companion and domesticated animals.
LTB4 antagonists are compounds with pharmacologically valuable properties. LTB4 antagonists are used in human medicine for treating arthritis, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, psoriasis, ulcerative colitis, Alzheimer's disease, shock, reperfusion damage/ischaemia, cystic fibrosis, atherosclerosis and multiple sclerosis.
LTB4 antagonists are known, e.g., from International Patent Applications WO 93/16036, WO 94/11341, WO 96/02497, WO 97/21670, WO 98/11062, WO 98/11119, WO 01/25186, WO 01/51457 and WO 02/34715.
Diseases of the airways, particularly chronic diseases in companion and domesticated animals, generally have different causes from asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in humans. Because of these respiratory complaints, yields and performance will decrease sharply in domesticated or sporting animals, and thus lead to high economic losses. The medicaments used hitherto such as beta-mimetics or steroids lead to long waiting times in the case of animals bred for their meat and, in the case of animals used in sport, result in exclusion from competition on the grounds of suspicions of doping. In addition, some of these medicaments have limited efficacy and/or have undesirable side effects.
The problem of the present invention is therefore to provide a method of treating or preventing respiratory diseases in companion or domesticated animals, which treatment will lead to a rapid and lasting improvement in the health and performance of these animals without having the disadvantages of known treatment regimes.